Plano Photography Club
PPC COMPETITION RULES
Adopted by the PPC Executive Committee
PURPOSE OF COMPETITIONS 1
The purpose of the PPC competition is to encourage members to practice their art through monthly contests, to
provide educational opportunities for improvement, and to reward members’ photographic achievements. The
PPC Executive Committee (the PPC Board) must approve changes to the rules governing the competition.
CHANGES
Changes to these rules may be made by a simple majority of the PPC Board.
COMPETITION YEAR
Contests are conducted on a monthly basis beginning in May and continuing through the following March. There
are no contests in December and April.
DIVISIONS
There are two divisions, electronic and print, but only one division is accepted each month as defined by the
Board. Currently the print division is assigned to October and March. The electronic division is assigned to the
other eight contest months.
CLASSES (LEVELS)
Club members compete in one of four classes based on photography skills.
Entry (E) – One who is learning the basic operation of the camera and the basic concepts of composition, exposure,
lighting, and post-processing of images.
Intermediate (I) – One who is comfortable with photography fundamentals and is knowledgeable in the concepts
of composition, exposure, lighting, and post-processing techniques for creating images.
Advanced (A) – One who is experienced in the technical aspects of the camera and proficient in the concepts of
composition, exposure, lighting, and post-processing techniques for creating images. May be skillful in more than
one genre of photography, for example, landscape, portrait, macro, photojournalism, wedding, etc.
Master (M) – One who can teach others the concepts of composition, exposure, lighting and post-processing of
images, and has provided significant service to the club as an active officer and is expected to continue to serve as
a teacher, activity coordinator, tabletop leader, etc.. Has the skills necessary to provide meaningful critique of
others’ images and is skillful in several genres of photography, for example, landscape, portrait, macro,
photojournalism, wedding, etc. Must have been an active member of the club at least one year.
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First-time competitors may choose to compete in either the Entry class or the Intermediate class.
A new member may solicit the Board to begin in the Advanced class, but the Board must be familiar with
the member’s body of work or the member must present a portfolio to the Board.
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Contest is used for a single event, such as “monthly contest.” Competition refers to an extended event, such as
the PPC yearly competition, which consists of 10 contests.
PPC Contest Rules and Guidelines
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Plano Photography Club
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Returning members (those who have not competed for at least a year) compete in the class equivalent to
their previous class.
A club member must compete in the same class throughout the competition year.
A member may choose to change classes (to Entry or Intermediate) at the end of the competition year
after consultation with the Contest Chairman.
CONTEST THEMES
Each competition year five of the contest months have assigned themes and five contest months are open (no
assigned theme). Assigned themes and their definitions are approved by the Board. Of the two print-division
months, one is assigned and one is open.
While creativity is encouraged, entries in the monthly contests should reflect the contest themes; in months
designated as Open, images are not constrained to a particular theme.
The Board generally attempts to balance themes between those that could be considered technical (such as low
light photography), compositional (such as leading lines), or simply creative.
IMAGES
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Images may originate from any medium (film, electronic sensor, or future technology for recording
photographic images.)
Images must originate as photographs created by the entrant. Post-processing, including composites of
several original images, is allowed if produced by the entrant.
Design elements may be added to the image if created by the entrant; however, images must not be
solely computer-generated graphic art.
Images must be the creation of the photographer and not solely an image capture of another’s art work. If
another’s art work is included in an image, the photographer must contribute further insight with
compositional elements, such as unique lighting or a unique perspective.
Printed images may be printed by the entrant, another individual, or a commercial lab; however,
alterations such as color correction and white balance must only be made by the entrant.
Images must not depict the desecration of religious symbols.
Images must not show more live female nudity than a bikini would show or more live male nudity than a
swimsuit would show. See-through fabric is considered the same as exposed skin.
Images must not contain any text, titles, or watermarks identifying the entrant.
Images that were submitted to a PPC contest are eligible to be resubmitted to a later PPC contest, except
as noted in the discussion of Points below.
JUDGING
Judging of images is intended for the education of club members so they may improve their photography skills.
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Judges are selected by the Contest Manager and may be members of the Plano Photography Club or
persons outside the club membership. Only one judge is required for each contest; however, the number
of judges is not limited to one.
Judges are given the same theme and description that members receive and may disqualify any entry they
deem does not meet the stated theme. A disqualified image earns zero points and there is no appeal.
The photographer’s name is not revealed to the judge during judging.
Judges are asked to give helpful critiques for every submitted image.
PPC Contest Rules and Guidelines
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Plano Photography Club
POINTS
Points are awarded to each submitted image by the judge and are used for advancement and recognition. Points
are not carried over from one competition year to the next.
Image points (also called Judge’s points) are awarded by the judge based solely on the merits of the image and not
in competition with other images. The judge considers impact, composition, and the technical aspects of the image
in determining the point value. No image scores less than 6 points, and the maximum number of points is 15.
Place points are awarded for 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and HM in each class (level). There is also an overall Best of Show (BoS)
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award selected from the 1 Place images only. The point values are:
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First Place
First Place with BoS
Second Place
Third Place
Honorable Mention
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6
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The number of awards depends upon the number of entries, as follows:
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4 or more entries
3 entries
2 entries
award 1st, 2nd, 3rd Place and an optional Honorable Mention
award 1st and 2nd Place only
award 1st Place only
For the purposes of recognition as described below, each photographer’s total Image points, and total Image
points plus Place points is calculated over the 10 months of the competition year. For advancement, total Place
points over the year is calculated.
Images that have received Place points in any previous PPC contest in any division or class are not eligible for
succeeding contests. This extends to any images created by the same entrant that are substantially similar to those
that have received Place points. Prior to the 2011-2012 competition year, Honorable Mention images did not
receive Place points and, thus, are eligible.
RECOGNITION
Each month the images that receive 1st, 2nd, or 3rd Place in each class are included in the following month’s
newsletter; honorable mention images may be included, if there is space. The Best in Show is featured with
commentary by the photographer. The current competition standings are published in each month’s newsletter.
Place-winning images may also be displayed on the club’s web site and Facebook page.
At the end of the competition year, plaques are awarded as follows:
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Photographer of the Year – Awarded to the photographer, regardless of class, who submitted at least six
entries during the year and has the highest total of Image points plus Place points for the year. The
Photographer of the Year is the honored speaker for a monthly club meeting.
Highest Points in each class – Awarded to the photographer in each class with the most Image points.
Ribbons are awarded to those with the second and third highest Image points.
Digital Image of the Year – Selected by a judge from the digital images receiving First or Second place
throughout the competition year. Ribbons are awarded for Second and Third Place.
Print Image of the Year – Selected by a judge from the print images receiving First or Second place
throughout the competition year. Ribbons are awarded for Second and Third Place.
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Plano Photography Club
ADVANCEMENT
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Advancement is determined based on Place points received during the full competition year (May –
March).
Participants in the Entry or Intermediate class who earn 35 or more Place points in the competition year
must advance to the next class for the ensuing competition year.
The Board may recommend additional advancements to equalize the distribution of participants among
the classes or the level of expertise within a class.
Advancement to the Master class is at the invitation of the PPC Board.
Participants in the Advanced class who earn 35 or more Place points in the competition year must also
meet the criteria for Master class, as listed in the description of the classes, to be considered for
advancement by the PPC Board.
PPC Contest Rules and Guidelines
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Plano Photography Club
PPC COMPETITION PROCESS GUIDELINES
PROCESS GUIDELINES
The competition processes are intended to expedite the submission, management, and judging of images while
providing a positive, rewarding, and instructional experience for club members.
CHANGES
At times, the contest manager may find it necessary to change a process depending on available technology,
resources, or people. The contest manager should advise the PPC Board of process changes, but no approval is
needed.
ENTRY PROCESS
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Members must register on the Competition web site http://plano.photoclubservices.com to submit
images to the monthly contests.
Members are encouraged to compete in the proper class based on their skills. (No sand-bagging, please.)
Entrants may submit only one image for each contest month.
Images must be submitted through the Competition web site following the instructions defined there
concerning size, file type (jpg) naming, and deadlines. This includes an electronic version of print images
also. Currently, the maximum image dimension is 1400 (width) x 1050 (height) for best projection for
judging and showing.
Entries that do not adhere to the Image rules may be disqualified by the Contest Manager and withdrawn
from the contest. If there is enough time before the contest deadline, the submitter may enter a different
image. The submitter may appeal the decision to the PPC President, whose decision is final.
FURTHER STEPS FOR PRINTS
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Print images must be mounted but not framed.
The physical dimensions of the mounted entry must be no larger than 16” x 24”.
A top mat is optional. (Matting necessitates the reduction of the image size since the mat must adhere to
the maximum mounted entry size limits.)
The physical size of the image must be no smaller than 64 square inches and no larger than 16” x 24” (unmatted). For panoramas, the minimum size is 96 square inches and no longer than 24” (un-matted). The
aspect ratio of panoramas should be 2:1 or greater (3:1, 4:1, etc.)
Print entries must have a label on the back with the submitter name, class, image title, and an arrow
indicating the top of the image. Labels may be generated from the Competition web site when submitting
the electronic version of the print.
Prints may be placed in a protective sleeve that is also labeled with the photographer’s name.
Prints must be physically submitted to the Contest Manager before the end of the month’s club meeting.
ADVANCEMENT PROCESS
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The PPC Board reviews the points awarded during the competition year and identifies those who are
eligible to be advanced to the next class for the coming competition year.
The Board has the option of inviting additional participants to be advanced. It may consider class standing,
or a photographer’s consistent level of excellence, or the distribution of participants among the classes.
PPC Contest Rules and Guidelines
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Plano Photography Club
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Those invited to be advanced may reject the invitation.
The PPC Board considers for advancement to Master class those who have met the Advancement criteria
and meet all the criteria for Master class.
The Contest chairman or a designated representative must inform the participants who have been
identified and selected for advancement, and obtain consent from those to whom invitations were made.
The final class changes must be made in the Competition web site before the May contest opens. The
May contest opening date may be postponed to allow time for the Board to receive the final scores, make
evaluations, and inform participants.
PPC Contest Rules and Guidelines
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April 2017